1811 — Mar 22/23, American ship Tonquin crew drown trying to sound Columbia Bar, OR–8-10

–10 Marshall, Don. Oregon Shipwrecks. Portland, OR: Binford & Mort Pubs., 1984, p. 133.
— 8 Nisbet, Jack and Claire. “The ship Tonquin…sights the mouth of the Columbia River…”
— 8 Wikipedia (Tonquin (1807). 1-15-2020 update.

Narrative Information

Gibbs: “”….The ten-gun Tonquin, under command of Captain Jonathan Thorn, sailed from New York on September 8, 1810, loaded with supplies for the establishment of the new Astor colony, and carrying a thirty-three-man crew made up of Scots Highlanders, gentlemen’s sons and rough Canadian voyageurs….

“Thorn, a naval officer on leave from his regular commission, wore no velvet gloves to soften his iron-handed rule…

“Then the Tonquin and her surly crew finally arrived at the Columbia River entrance, March 22, 1811, the bar was rough with breakers from a strong south-west wind. A less headstrong commander would have waited for milder weather, but not Captain Thorn. He ordered William Fox, his first officer, along with several others, to man the whaleboat and take soundings.

“Knowing the whaleboat was in need of repair and justly fearful of the angry seas, Fox protested bitterly. Thorn merely taunted his cowardice: ‘If you are afraid of the sea, Mr. Fox, you should never have left Boston.’

“So the damaged whaleboat, with Fox at the tiller went over the side of the Tonquin into the raging waters – soon to disappear in the heaving swells. Neither craft nor crew was ever seen thereafter.

“Night came on and the ship rolled violently in the sea. The following day the wind subsided and the Tonquin found anchorage in fourteen fathoms [68 feet] near the north entrance of the river – but she had yet to cross the bar.

“….Because the ship lay in a dangerous position, it was decided that Alexander McKay and David Stuart of the Astor party should man the pinnace and sound the bar channel. The boat was lowered, but within a few minutes it swamped in the surg, the two men narrowly escaping with their lives.

“….As the Tonquin was slowly being carried toward shore, Captain Thorn found his position growing more perilous…Among the cargo carried on the vessel was the frame of a small schooner which was to have been assembled at the new establishment. All hands set to work; shortly they had the craft fitted together. John Aiken was put in charge, assisted by the ship’s sailmaker and the ship’s armorer. When the work was completed, the vessel was manned for one final attempt to guide the Tonquin into safe waters.

“The schooner proved to be more successful than the smaller boats; it eventually located the safe channel. After carefully marking the area, the crew headed back to join the Tonquin, but the currents swept their craft broadside into a curling breaker, tossing her on her beam ends and spilling the crew into the chilling water.

“Thorn would not risk sending aid to the struggling men, as he needed every hand to save the ship from being carried onto the spit. Suddenly the Tonquin struck. Water surged over her decks, and loose gear floated free of its fittings. Shrouds and halyards snapped as the vessel kept poking her prow on the shoal. Foundering seemed imminent…

“Then…the Tonquin drifted free with the tide and was carried over the bar after having struck it repeatedly without sustaining serious damage to her hull….” (pp. 65-68.)

Marshall: “Tonquin 3/22/1811 Ship, American 260 tons….Eight men drowned trying to sound the bar; the following day, two more met with the same fate…”

Sources

Gibbs, James A. Pacific Graveyard. A Narrative of Shipwrecks Where the Columbia River Meets the Pacific Ocean. Portland, OR: Binford & Mort Publishing, 1993.

Marshall, Don. Oregon Shipwrecks. Portland, OR: Binford & Mort Publishing, 1984.

Nisbet, Jack and Claire. “The ship Tonquin out of New York City sights the mouth of the Columbia River on March 22, 1811.” HistoryLing.org Essay 8673. 7-1-2008. Accessed 4-18-2020 at: https://www.historylink.org/File/8673

Wikipedia (Tonquin (1807). 1-15-2020 update. Accessed 4-17-2020 at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonquin_(1807)